Royal Purple

Issue date: 7/4/07 Section: Arts & Lifestyle

Media Credit: Nicole Trotta

Media Credit: Nicole Trotta Rollin Cooper stands with one of his horses on his 20-acre organic farm

Summer just isn't summer without garden-picked berries, freshly squeezed lemonade and farm-grown sweet corn.

During this season of the quest for fresh food, many people choose to bring home high-quality organic produce.

According to the United States Department of Agriculture, organic foods are free of chemical fertilizers, herbicides, irradiation, genetic engineering, growth hormones and sewage sludge.

The trend toward organics is sweeping the nation. Organic ingredients are used in everything from cosmetics and hair products to clothing, bags and even furniture.

Although there aren't any dining room sets made from organic hemp available in Whitewater, there is a way to purchase locally grown organic fruits and vegetables.

Rollin Cooper owns and operates a 20-acre organic farm, Cooper's Natural Foods, 1127 Walworth Ave., and sells fresh strawberries, rhubarb, cucumbers and sweet corn out of a cart in his front yard.

After retiring in 1991, Cooper finally realized his lifelong dream of owning a farm and opened Cooper's Natural Foods in 1994.

"I grew up on a farm, and it was my job to take care of the horses," Cooper said. "I always wanted a farm but couldn't afford it, so I went to college instead. It wasn't until I retired that I started organic gardening."

The farm started out as a partnership between Cooper and members of Community Supported Agriculture. Families involved with CSA supported the farm by paying Cooper $400-$700 per season, and they received a box of produce each week in return.

Cooper could have decided to farm conventionally but opted to grow organically both for environmental and economic reasons.

"At first I wanted to demonstrate that it was economically viable to farm organically," Cooper said. "Last time I raised soybeans I sold them for $22 a bushel when the price of conventional soybeans was $7. Although the yield for organic is not so great when you don't use commercial fertilizers, I still came out ahead."

Cooper, a self-described environmentalist, uses manure from his three horses for fertilizer as well as crop rotation.

For most people who buy organic produce, the appeal is the perceived health benefits associated with the lack of chemical agents and fertilizers.

Margi Turner, a Florida resident visiting Whitewater on business, picked up a half-gallon of organic milk from Sentry Foods for her hotel room with that in mind.

"I like to buy organic milk because I know the cow [the milk] came from was hormone free," Turner said. "We put enough bad things into our systems, so if I can consciously avoid it in this way, of course I'm going to do it."

Cooper, who received a bachelor's degree in agriculture from UW-Madison, would agree with Turner.

"I look at it this way: If an insecticide is going to kill a bug, why can't it kill me?" Cooper said.

Cooper believes the chemicals used to grow food may attribute to the rising number of people diagnosed with cancer in America.

This theory, resounding around America for the past 10 years or so, is precisely what prompted Sentry Foods to start carrying a natural foods section, including organic cereal, chicken, frozen beef, produce, dairy and more.

Dennis Riley, store manager, said Sentry began selling natural foods in 1997 due to a high demand, especially from college students, for organic food.

"If it wasn't for the college population, we probably wouldn't have the selection we have," Riley said. "We just added more products in the last six months because we know the trend is growing … people are now more willing to pay the price."

Riley said that in other parts of the country, organic foods are even more popular.

"As excited as [I] am about this, it's a trend that's moving more slowly around here than it is nationally," Riley said.

Although Riley cited the university students as the reason for stocking the organic foods section, this demographic typically doesn't allocate extra money in their grocery budget for high-priced foods.

This is one of the reasons why organic food accounts for only 2 percent of food sales - it's just too expensive, even for people who acknowledge the environmental and health benefits.

Dan Roelke, UW-Whitewater senior, said he knows he should - and wants to - buy organic produce, but he doesn't because of the high prices.

"When I get my salaried job I know I'll start buying organic," Roelke said.

Cooper predicts that in the future, as the trend grows, the price differential between organic foods and conventionally produced foods will shrink.

But in the meantime he said it's simply a personal choice of whether buying organic food is worth the price.

"You have to decide how to spend your dollar based on your values," Cooper said.

Cooper's Natural Foods is currently closed but will re-open daily from 8 a.m. - sun-down in August when sweet corn is in season.

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